The Christmas Tree
by Ranger89
Summary: Harper brings a little Christmas cheer onto the Andromeda


Disclaimer: I don't own Andromeda, I'm not making any profit off of this etc, etc.  
  
Synopsis: When Beka agreed to help Harper pick out a Christmas tree, she didn't know what she was getting herself into.  
  
Beka Valentine looked around her at the scrubby green trees in disgust. Why had she ever let Harper talk her into this? She didn't even like planets, but somehow she had agreed to take him to a village on some backwater world so he could pick out a Christmas Tree. What's more, she had consented to hiking up into the woods to search for the perfect evergreen. Beka shook her head. If only she had known.  
  
"What's wrong with this one?" she asked, pointing to the one Harper had just passed.  
  
"It's too small," the engineer explained. "A Christmas Tree's got to be much bigger than that puny thing, Boss."  
  
"What about this one?" Beka asked again, this time shining her glow rod off to their left.  
  
"Too tall," Harper replied without giving it so much as a second glance.  
  
Beka sighed as she continued to trudge along behind him. They had been walking through the snow for almost an hour now out in the middle of no where. While the cold didn't seem to bother Harper, it was beginning to get to her. She pulled her jacket more tightly around her as the wind began to pick up. She stopped for a moment, as Harper paused to shine his light towards another tree. He stared at it, cocking his head to one side. She was beginning to think he had found what he was looking for, but that hope was quickly dashed as he started walking again.  
  
I wonder if this was what it was like when he was growing up? she thought as she watched her engineer bound through the snow with uncontained enthusiasm. No, she reminded herself quickly, he probably never got to do anything like this, not where he lived.  
  
She felt a wave of sadness creep over her as she imagined what his Christmases on Earth must have been like.  
  
They were nothing worth celebrating.  
  
Beka was brought to a sudden halt as she slammed into Harper's back, realizing for the first time that he had stopped. He didn't seem to notice her, but instead his gaze was fixed on a tree in front of them.  
  
"Ahhh," she heard him exclaim quietly to himself as he moved forward. He walked around the evergreen, carefully looking at it from every angle. After circling it several times, he came to a stop beside her. Slowly, he began nodding.  
  
"This is it, Beka. It's perfect. Tall, without being too tall, and big without being too big."  
  
"You're sure?" she questioned, raising her eyebrows. "Because I am not coming back out here in the cold to find another one."  
  
Harper smiled, his eyes never leaving the tree. "Oh, I'm sure."  
  
~~~~~~~~  
  
"I wish I knew what he was doing in there," Beka stated as she stared at the closed Obs deck door.  
  
"So do I," Dylan replied, following her gaze with a worried expression.  
  
"Come on, Rommie, give us a little peek at least," Beka begged as a holo image of the Andromeda's avatar sprang to life.  
  
"It's not going to happen," the black haired hologram replied, crossing her arms over her chest. "I promised Harper that I wouldn't tell anyone what he was planning."  
  
Beka sighed, leaning back against the wall of the corridor. After helping him move the tree from the Maru, Harper had shooed her away. He pulled Rommie into the Obs Deck with him, before locking the door and forbidding the rest of the crew to enter. That had been over three hours ago, and neither the human or the android had yet to come out.  
  
"Can I at least speak to him?" Beka asked the ship's hologram, walking towards a nearby console.  
  
"Fine, but he's not going to tell you anything."  
  
Rolling her eyes, Beka turned her attention to the screen. After a few seconds, the image of her blond haired engineer came up. "What's wrong, Boss?' he questioned, the tell tell signs of a caffeine high shinning in his big blue eyes.  
  
"Would you mind letting us in, Harper? I'd like to know what you're doing to this ship," she said in her patented 'I'm the Captain, so do what I say when I say it' voice. Unfortunately, it didn't work as well as she had hopped.  
  
"Unuh, Beka. You're going to have to wait till tomorrow like everyone else," he replied, shaking his head.  
  
"You plan on holing yourself up in there all night?" she asked, a little surprised.  
  
"Yep, I'm not going to risk you or Dylan sneaking in here overnight," he replied. "So, the sooner you get to sleep, the sooner you'll find out what I'm doing." Before she could reply, Harper cut the connection.  
  
"Annoying little punk," she mumbled as she stared at the blank screen. "This better be good, or I have half a mind to wring his scrawny neck."  
  
~~~~~~~~  
  
Beka woke up the next morning and tossed her covers back. While she didn't want to admit it, Harper had certainly peaked her interest, and she was dying to know what he had been working on. Grabbing her robe, she pulled it on as she crept down Andromeda's corridors. She was surprised to find Dylan already standing outside the Obs Deck's door when she arrived.  
  
"He hasn't opened up yet?" she questioned, tightening the sash of her robe.  
  
"Not yet, but Rommie says it won't be long," he replied. She glanced over at him, smiling. At the moment he didn't look like the Captain of the most powerful starship in the galaxy.  
  
"Nothing?" Trance Gemini asked as she bounded towards them enthusiastically.  
  
Beka shook her head. The young purple girl frowned, as she waited beside the two of them. A few minutes later Rev Bem wandered down the hall, and stared at the closed door.  
  
"Harper seems to be in unusual high spirits this year," he said, smiling serenely.  
  
"Yes, the little professor better have a good reason for locking me out of my gym," Tyr stated icily as he rounded the corner.  
  
Trance stuck her tongue out at him, and he growled. Unfortunately, the menacing gesture didn't so much as phase her. The group continued to stand uncomfortably in the hallway, when suddenly, Andromeda's hologram appeared.  
  
"Good. You're all here. Everything's ready, and I've been instructed to let you in now." she said before blinking out of existence again. There was a brief pause before the doors to the Obs Deck finally began to open.  
  
Beka caught her breath as she stepped inside. It was beautiful. Garlands, lights, and glass ornaments adorned every surface. The tree she and Harper had found the night before was in the center of the room, meticulously decorated with multi colored ceramic balls. There were even trays of cookies pilled up on a nearby table.  
  
"Well, this is a surprise," Dylan said in awe as he looked around him.  
  
Trance bounded forward, swooping down on the pile of presents that were laying underneath the Christmas tree. "Harper got us gifts!" she exclaimed, her eyes widening.  
  
"Mr. Harper certainly outdid himself," Rev replied, reaching for the wrapped box Trance had handed him.  
  
"Speaking of Harper, where is he?" Beka questioned, looking for the engineer. After a little searching, she spotted a flexi balanced on one of the tree's lower branches. Picking it up, she read it over quickly.  
  
Gone with Rommie to pick up parts for the slip drive. Took the Maru. Hope you don't mind, Boss. See you when we get back.  
  
Harper  
  
P.S. Hope you like the gifts!  
  
She smiled. Trust Seamus to do something as elaborate as this and then leave before anyone had time to thank him.  
  
She tucked the flexi into her robe pocket and turned back to the rest of the crew, who had already torn into their gifts. Rev was examining a new prayer book. Tyr was scrutinizing a set of well crafted knives. Dylan balanced a custom made Force lance in his hands, and Trance was carefully holding an exotic purple plant. Each gift had had a lot of thought put into it... and each had cost a fair amount of money.  
  
Glancing around, Beka quickly found a box with her name on it. She picked up the thin package, and pushed off the lid. She felt tears begin to well in her eyes as she gazed down at a beautiful necklace set on a velvet cushion. A tiny star hung from a silver chain, a diamond had been placed in it's center.  
  
"From a guy who knows you're not as of big of a tomboy as you think you are," the note on the lid said. Smiling, Beka slipped the necklace from the box and slid it around her neck.  
  
It must have cost him a fortune! she thought as she glanced down at it.  
  
"Thank you, Seamus," she whispered softly as she tightened the clasp. "Maybe I won't kill you for taking off with my ship after all." 


End file.
